Vehicles such as motor homes, campers, and towable trailers have a limited amount of lateral interior space as they must be able to drive on roadways. These vehicles often employ rooms that slide out from one side, useable when the vehicle is parked, to increase interior living space. The slide-out rooms are retractable when the vehicle is driven to a different location. Additionally, vehicles that are not designed for human habitation, such as box trucks, trailers, cargo containers, or fixed building structures such as mobile or fixed homes may benefit from adjustable interior space as well.
One major problem with conventional slide-out rooms is that these structures can only extend a short distance, and rely on on cantilever or bulky ridge structures for support. This limits the slide-out room to only one side of the vehicle. Another problem is that extended floors are elevated in comparison to the existing vehicle floor. Extending these types of rooms do not therefore actually increase the “floor space” of the vehicle. Even slide-out rooms that are close to the existing floor are not flush due to the floor support designs. This creates a trip hazard when the expanded floor is deployed, or when nested across the existing floor. Finally, the extending walls of conventional slide-out rooms block off interior space when the rooms are retracted.
The present invention permits the extendable interior area to adjust to greater distances than traditional designs while maintaining structural integrity and keeping the extended floor level with the fixed floor. Extendable floors and walls roll up into hidden storage areas for easy mobility and functionality. Additionally, the extendable area can be added to either side or both sides of the structure to maximize final square footage of useable interior space in a fully extended position.